 BRIGHTEN YOUR WINTER GARDEN
WITH SOME COLOUR
When most of the garden is down to its bare bones, plants which flower and look their best in the colder months are a real treasure. There is something very special about having flowers in the garden during wintertime and members of the Helleborus family, also known as Christmas Rose are the perfect choice. These plants bring a fresh, delicate beauty to the garden in winter which provides a contrast with the cold, sometimes harsh days of the season.
The Helleborus family is made up of perennials, but unlike many such plants, Helleborus tend to retain their old leaves through into spring and flower in winter and early spring. The flowers are white, cream, pink, purple or green. They look great in a woodland setting or underneath a tree in the garden, where they bring life and colour when other plants are dormant. Helleborus is particularly at home in this situation as semi-shade suits them and they do need protection from cold winds. Alternatively planting them in groups in a shrub border can work well, perhaps in front of an evergreen hedge to provide a backdrop of colour which will show off the flowers to their best.
Here are a few specific plants to consider. The beautifully named 'December Dawn' (Helleborus x ballardiae) produces white flowers that are flushed pinkish-purple from the middle of winter through into early spring. The stems grow to about 35 cm. Optimal conditions are dappled shade and neutral to alkaline soil. Christmas Rose itself produces flowers which are white with greenish white centres. They become pinkish-white towards spring. It enjoys similar conditions to 'December Dawn', but prefers a soil with high clay content. Stems of Christmas Rose tend to reach about 30cm. A variety of Christmas Rose to look out for is 'Potters Wheel', which produces large, bowl-shaped white flowers. Finally, some of the Helleborus hybrid varieties, for example 'Citron' or 'Pluto' are attractive choices. 'Citron' can bring an unexpected show of primrose-yellow to the garden at this time. 'Pluto' produces fine flowers, purple outside, but a subtle green-shaded purple on the inside of the petals. These hybrid varieties are tolerant of most soils except those which are very poorly drained or dry. Each of these plants is fully hardy.
Helleborus can bring the elements of simplicity and contrast to the garden. With beautiful plants like Helleborus to choose from, a stylish garden with winter colour is readily achievable. In fact, when one considers that the garden in winter can have flowers, form and foliage, plus the possibility of the natural drama of frost or snow, it's easy to see why today's gardeners take a year-round approach to their favourite activity.
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